Maltese general election, 2008

Maltese general election, 2008
Malta
8 March 2008
  First party Second party
 
Leader Lawrence Gonzi Alfred Sant
Party Nationalist Labour
Leader since 23 March 2004 1992
Last election 35 seats, 51.8% 30 seats, 48.0%
Seats won 35 34
Seat change Steady 0 Increase 4
Popular vote 143,468 141,888
Percentage 49.3% 48.8%
Swing Decrease 2.5% Increase 0.8%
Prime Minister before election

Lawrence Gonzi
Nationalist

 Elected Prime Minister

Lawrence Gonzi
Nationalist

Malta
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Malta
Foreign relations

The Maltese general election for the renewal of the Maltese House of Representatives was held on Saturday, 8 March 2008. The governing Nationalist Party won a narrow victory over the Malta Labour Party.

Background

The House of Representatives was dissolved on 4 February[1] with elections scheduled for 8 March, the same day that elections were to be held in 23 of 68 local councils.

Results

Initial exit polls and statistics suggested a very close result. Preliminary results had been expected by Sunday noon but these had to be delayed until a full first count was completed.

The Nationalist Party won with 49.33% to Labour's 48.9% a difference of 1,580 votes.[2] Just under 2% of registered voters, 5,266 individuals, failed to collect their voting documents,[3] so fewer than 310,000 people were eligible to vote on 8 March 2008. In total, voter turnout was 93%, the lowest in Malta since 1971.[4]

As the Nationalist Party won the popular vote but elected only 31 Members of Parliament to Labour's 34, it was assigned an additional four seats to give the party a parliamentary majority.[5]

Two other political parties participated in this election, Democratic Alternative and National Action, but both failed to win any seats.

Twelve casual elections were held in April 2008 to fill vacancies arising from candidates elected from two districts declining their second seat. Both the Nationalist Party and Labour each elected six members in this way, leaving the overall parliamentary numbers unchanged.[6]

Overview

 Summary of the 8 March 2008 House of Representatives of Malta election results
Parties Votes % Change Seats Change
Nationalist Party (Partit Nazzjonalista) 143,468 49.34 –2.5 35 ±0
Malta Labour Party (Partit Laburista) 141,888 48.79 +0.8 34 +4
Democratic Alternative (Alternattiva Demokratika) 3,810 1.31 +0.6 — —
National Action (Azzjoni Nazzjonali) 1,461 0.50 +0.0 — —
Imperium Europa 84 0.03 +0.0 — —
Gozitan Party (Partit Għawdxi) 37 0.01 +0.0 — —
Independents (Indipendenti) 22 0.01 +0.0 — —
Alpha Liberal Democrats (Alfa Liberali Demokratiku) 21 0.01 +0.0 — —
Forward Malta (Forza Malta) 8 0.00 +0.0 — —
Invalid/blank votes3,415————
Total 294,214 100.0 69 +4
Registered voters/turnout315,35793.3———
Source: DOI, Nohlen & Stöver[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Michael Carabott, "Election on 8 March: PM shows ‘the way forward’", The Malta Independent, 5 February 2008
  2. ↑ "Nationalist supporters celebrate a narrow victory", The Times of Malta, 9 March 2008.
  3. ↑ "The Waiting Game: what to look out for", "The Times of Malta", 9 March 2008.
  4. ↑ "Turnout drops to 93%, lowest since 1971", The Times of Malta, 9 March 2008.
  5. ↑ timesofmalta.com - UPDATED: Vote counting almost completed
  6. ↑ "Department of Information". Doi.gov.mt. 2008-04-17. Retrieved 2010-11-14.
  7. ↑ Nohlen, D & Stöver, P (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1309 ISBN 9873832956097
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